State services on alert ‘throughout summer’ to combat wildfires

All the competent state services will be on alert “throughout the summer” to prevent and combat wildfires, fire brigade chief Nikos Longinos said on Wednesday during a visit to inspect firefighting aircraft which are stationed at Paphos airport.

He said that at present, a total of 10 firefighting aircraft are on the island, with eight of them – four helicopters and four aeroplanes – stationed in Paphos.

Of those aircraft, he said, two have been sent from Jordan, while three more are expected to arrive by the end of next week. Two of those three will be stationed at the British Akrotiri air force base.

“So, in total, we will have 13 aircraft, and at the same time, the British bases have brought two helicopters and have informed us that one helicopter is on constant alert, can help us at any time, and, if necessary, the second helicopter will also be put on operational alert,” he said.

He said that in addition to the stationing of the aircraft, “we are in contact with all the relevant services so that we can be ready to deal with any incident, to reduce the chances of it happening, to put it better, and if an incident occurs, to be able to respond in a coordinated manner so we can extinguish the fire”.

This, he said, was the primary reason behind his visit to Paphos.

“I had contact with the aircraft’s crews, both of the helicopters and of the aeroplanes, to speak to them and to further increase readiness,” he said.

He added that with summer now approaching and temperatures rising and fires bound to start”, he had also visited Larnaca airport alongside forestry department director Savvas Iezekiel last week.

“Meetings will continue with district governments, with volunteer groups, with villages, where we speak with the mukhtars, and we indicate to them what measures they should take to create firebreaks, clear grass, check hydrants,” he said.

“Generally, we try in every way to be on standby every day to deal with the incidents which will, of course, occur.”

Asked about reinforcements to mountain firefighting teams, he said 60 new forest firefighters have been hired and are currently undergoing training before they can enter the force.

He added that with these increased numbers, the manning of observatories and patrols will increase, while the forestry department has also spent the spring cleaning firebreak lanes and inspecting fire hydrants.

“We are speaking with the volunteer groups and patrols will be determined, with which volunteer groups will help us so that we can supervise the areas,” he said.

In terms of drones he said the fire brigade also has its own “drone teams”, and that alongside them, “we are also preparing to use groups of private individuals who wish to help with patrols and providing information in the event of smoke or a fire”.

“Therefore, we will reinforce the countryside with more resources this year to have a quick provision of information and response to extinguish the fires,” he said.

He was then asked about the issue of landfills and discarded waste materials, with a major wildfire having started at a landfill site in the Paphos district village of Ayia Marinouda last year.

“Unfortunately, their number is increasing instead of decreasing. As soon as we detect such a fire, the environment department is informed and immediately sends an officer, who speaks with the responsible municipality or village council to clean up these dumps,” he said.

He did, however, stress that “it is an issue which concerns us because unfortunately, many people choose areas which are isolated to throw away their waste materials and for many different reasons, they start fires in these places, where it is very easy for a fire to spread”.

Looking ahead to the coming summer, he pointed out that with heightened rates of rainfall in the spring, the amount of vegetation which has grown across the island is increased compared to most years, meaning that when summer comes and that vegetation dries out, the risk of wildfires starting and spreading will be “very high”.

“As such, we want to send a message: keep in mind that any tools which produce sparks, especially during periods when temperatures are high and there are strong winds, there will be a serious possibility of a fire starting.”